North Carolina opened up a big lead in the first half and cruised to a 78-55 victory over Rutgers on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The Tar Heels (9-4) shot 57 percent from the field and made six 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes to take a 42-22 lead.

Leslie McDonald scored eight points and Larry Drew II added seven points in the first half for the Tar Heels, who have won two straight and five of their last six with the loss being a two-point setback to Texas.

McDonald finished with 14 and Justin Watts added 10 for North Carolina.

The Scarlet Knights (9-3) had a six-game winning streak snapped, and had a chance to give themselves a signature win heading into Big East Conference play. Instead, Rutgers will have to lick its wounds as it heads into a tough conference opener at No. 8 Villanova on Sunday.

Jonathan Mitchell scored 20 points and Dane Miller had eight points on 3-for-12 shooting for the Scarlet Knights.